The 12 Days of Christmas: Spooks Style
by cowbell2011
Summary: A Spooks inspired version of the Christmas song, The 12 Days of Christmas. Pure fluff! HR but will have other characters from s8 in it too.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: So this is my attempt at a Christmas fic. Thought I would get into the festive spirit! Set mid season 8. It's based on the Christmas song, The 12 Days of Christmas (Disclaimer: which I do not own!), but with a Spooks twist!**

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><p><em>On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a bouquet of mixed lilies...<em>

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><p><strong>25<strong>**th**** December 2009**

Ruth sighed as she traipsed into Thames House. She could barely believe they had been red flashed on Christmas Day. It was traditionally the only day of the year they could rely on terrorists to have a day off; seemingly even the worst people in the world still enjoyed exchanging gifts. Thinking to herself that at least this way, she wouldn't be spending the day alone, she made her way through the pods and removed her jacket before slumping into her chair. She had not even turned her computer on before she saw Ros approaching.

'I see you've entered into the festive spirit Ruth.' Ros raised an eyebrow at Ruth's miserable looking face.

'Just one day without work. One day, that's all I asked.'

Ros chose to ignore the comment, instead nodding towards the briefing room.

'They're all in there, come on.'

Ruth sighed, rising from her chair and following Ros over to the briefing room, hoping that whoever had disturbed their day today would meet a very grisly end.

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><p>As it turned out, the threat was relatively minor to the country, and it had merely required some leg work on the team's behalf to track a known terror suspect that had been spotted buying the ingredients to make a nail bomb at his local DIY store. The group were currently huddled round Ruth's computer screen as she directed Lucas and a team of CO19 officers whilst they raided the suspect's house.<p>

Seeing that the job was mostly done and dusted, a collective sigh of relief was heard as the realisation swept through the room that they wouldn't all be at work for the whole of Christmas. Jo was even halfway through putting on her coat when Harry coughed loudly.

'Not so fast all of you. We must wait until Lucas gets back and files his report. Then we have to wait for Special Branch to pick up the suspect. That will take at least seven or eight hours. I suggest you all get started on your post case paperwork while you wait.'

He turned to make his way into his office, but, seeing the look of despair on his team's faces, he decided to take pity on them.

'...and, you may leave the grid one at a time to fetch decorations, food, presents...if you wish.'

Harry could hear cheers and whoops coming from the team as he closed the door to his office and he let a small smile grace his lips. Perhaps this was the perfect time to implement his plan.

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><p>Ruth was currently scouring the bare shelves of the petrol station, wondering what sort of Secret Santa present she could buy for Tariq in a place like this. It had been Jo's idea to do the Secret Santa, to save them all the hassle of buying a gift for each member of the team. It hadn't taken them long however, to realise that there wouldn't be any shops open, what with it being Christmas Day, and Jo had been gone for over half an hour before returning to the grid, covered in snow and clutching a plain carrier bag to her chest, exclaiming that the petrol station down the road was open. They had all filed out one by one to retrieve some sort of gift from the station, Jo going out once again to fetch food and decorations from her home to share with everybody else.<p>

Ruth had been the last one to go out, hoping to catch a word with Harry before she left, but he had been nowhere in sight for quite some time. Sighing to herself, she grabbed her coat and bag before leaving via the pods. She had been disappointed to get Tariq in the Secret Santa, having secretly been hoping for Harry. Continuing to look over the scant offerings in the petrol station, her heart did a little flip at the thought of him.

They had finally gotten over the awkwardness somewhat since her return from Cyprus, and she had forgiven him for his part in George's death. She still felt guilty herself, for dragging him into her messy life, but she had vowed recently to not take that out on Harry and against her better judgement, let him into her life a bit more. Buying him a Christmas present would have been the perfect ice breaker, but she couldn't get him one outside of the Secret Santa rules without everybody else asking questions. She would just have to think of something else at a later date.

Finally chancing upon some bike accessories in the corner of the petrol station, Ruth selected a puncture repair kit and a spare inner tube for Tariq before paying and making her way back to the grid. She became worried when she came through the pods and saw everybody crowded around her desk. Pushing her way through, she stopped and stared at the new addition to her desk that was now sitting proudly in front of her computer. Her mouth opened and closed but no words would come out, and she felt her face getting redder and redder as everybody was staring at her. She was saved by Harry finally appearing from his office.

'Come on now everyone, she's not in a zoo. Take a picture or move on.'

Upon hearing their boss' voice, the team scurried away to their desks and most of them busied themselves with wrapping up their Secret Santa gifts or putting up some decorations. Harry moved closer to Ruth's desk and she smiled in appreciation for him drawing the attention away from her. Gently, he ran a hand over the petals of the beautiful bouquet of lilies that had mysteriously found their way onto Ruth's desk.

'Lilies Ruth. They mean...what is it now? Oh yes. I dare you to love me.'

Harry looked Ruth straight in the eye as he said it, sending shivers down her spine. Leaning closer, he whispered in her ear.

'You have a very thoughtful Secret Santa gift there Ruth. I hope you appreciate the meaning behind it.'

Flustered, Ruth didn't speak or move for a second. She suddenly came back to her senses, and called out softly after Harry so that the others didn't hear.

'Lilies mean forever in love. They stand for tenderness, and flirtatiousness. A white lily symbolizes purity. African Lilies are for secret love, and yellow means gratitude and fun. All those colours are in this bunch.'

Harry walked back towards Ruth chuckling.

'Why am I not surprised you know all this Ruth?'

She smiled at him, and reached out with her hand, gently brushing his fingers with her own. The touch was electric, and they both felt it running through their veins. Staring at each other for a long moment, Tariq finally broke the spell by shouting out to everybody that their food was ready to eat. With one last look, Harry turned away from Ruth and made his way towards the briefing room.

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><p><strong>AN: Any good? Should I continue?**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I was really chuffed with the response for the first chapter of this, thank you so much to everybody who reviewed. On with the next one...**

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><p><em>On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a book of poetry...<em>

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><p><strong>26<strong>**th**** December 2009**

Ruth sighed, stopping her furious typing for a moment to rub her tired eyes. There had been a complication with the previous day's terror suspect and the whole team had been required to come in to Thames House again today. CO19 had found traces of uranium in the suspect's house so now they were frantically researching whether or not he could have made a dirty bomb since he had been in the UK.

The day had been long and hard, and everybody had stayed well into the night. They had set up surveillance on a known associate of their suspect in custody and were now watching him to see if he could lead them to an explosive device. Unfortunately, this involved a lot of waiting around and Ruth could tell the rest of them team were just as bored as she was. Tariq was twirling round in circles on his chair and Ruth glanced at the stapler on her desk longingly, wondering if it would cause too much damage were she to throw it at him to get him to stop.

A small cough to her left alerted her to the fact that she was being watched, and she glanced at Ros to find her looking back with an amused smirk on her face and a raised eyebrow. With the slightest movement of her head, she nodded towards the stapler and then briefly towards Tariq, as if to indicate that as Section Chief, she wouldn't have a problem should Ruth go through with her plan. Embarrassed at having been caught contemplating such a childish act in the first place, Ruth blushed and looked away, purposefully taking the stapler and putting it in the top drawer of her desk to remove any further temptation. She heard a light chuckle coming from Ros' direction as she walked away towards the staff canteen, and allowed herself a smile at how Ros finally seemed to be loosening up and integrating herself into the group. _It had taken long enough_ she thought.

Finding her way back to her desk, now accompanied by a steaming hot mug of tea, she was confused by the package that now sat proudly on top of her keyboard, her name printed clearly in black ink on the front. Sitting down and placing her tea to the side for the moment, she picked up the package to inspect it, shaking it and holding it to her ear to make sure it wasn't ticking, before realising how crazy she must have looked to everybody else and placing it carefully back down before her.

'Ros? Where did this come from?' Ruth inquired.

'I don't know Ruth. You're a spook, can't you find out?'

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><p><em><strong>5 minutes earlier<strong>_

_As soon as Harry saw Ruth disappear into the canteen, he quickly slid open the drawer in his desk and removed the package, standing and exiting his office swiftly. He moved over to Ruth's desk and placed the item on her keyboard, careful not to disturb anything. Looking around to make sure she hadn't yet returned, he turned to face the rest of the group who were by now looking at him with inquiring eyes._

'_Listen up. I wasn't here this last 5 minutes understood? This package, nobody saw it appear. I've been in my office the whole time. That is of course, unless anybody has a burning desire to be posted to Siberia. Am I clear?'_

_Harry looked expectantly into each pair of eyes, waiting for anybody to say something. Sensing time was not on his side, and with nobody having yet said anything, he straightened himself up to appear as tall as his aging back would allow and mustering as much authority as he could in his voice he spoke again._

'_Well?'_

_A smattering of 'Yes Harry' and 'Of course' could be heard, and satisfied that he had secured their silence, he nodded and returned to his office, sliding the door shut just as Ruth appeared round the corner with a mug of tea._

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><p>Deciding that it couldn't possibly be anything dangerous since it must be from one of the team, Ruth slowly unwrapped the brown paper and stared wide eyed as the contents inside were revealed. Lying atop the now crumpled paper was a first edition copy of <em>The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson<em>. Slowly she picked it up, inspecting it from all angles and holding it with the very tips of her fingers as if it would jump at her at any moment. She looked around the grid to see if anybody was watching her, but all faces were glued to their screens, each member of the team seemingly hard at work. Sensing foul play, since less than 10 minutes ago nobody had had any work to do whatsoever, she grasped the book tightly in her hand and made her way to Harry's office, entering with her customary lack of knocking.

'Ah Ruth. A New Year's resolution for you. Perhaps to make a solid attempt at learning to knock?'

He had said it with humour; Ruth's lack of knocking an ongoing joke between them, but she didn't seem to take any notice of his comment as she paced back and forth in his office. Waiting for her to say something, he merely sat and watched her. A few times she paused pacing and opened her mouth as if about to speak, before apparently changing her mind and continuing her pacing. This went on for a while before Harry decided he had better take the initiative, and spotting the book in her hand, he decided to play dumb for a while longer.

'That looks a fancy book Ruth, was it a Christmas gift off one of the team? Jo, perhaps?'

He was stunned into silence by the look of pure incredulity that Ruth shot his way and could not hide the smirk that appeared on his face when she began waving the book at him.

'Harry, you can't just buy me this...this...book and not say anything. I mean, _come on._ This is Dickinson! How did you even know I was looking for a copy of this? Wait, no...don't even answer that. I just...argh...impossible man!'

Ruth started up her pacing again and Harry decided he had better do something about it before she wore a hole in the carpet. Standing and moving from behind his desk, he approached her and placed his hands on her arms gently to get her to stop moving. She complied, and looked up into his eyes, speaking softly.

'It's the most thoughtful gift anybody has ever given me. Thank you.'

They stayed in silence, staring into each other's eyes for what seemed like minutes but could only have been a few seconds, when Harry's door suddenly opened and they sprang away from each other like two teenagers having been caught doing something they shouldn't

'Doesn't ANYBODY knock around here anymore?' Harry asked angrily.

He saw Ruth smirking out of the corner of his eye and was glad that their moment and almost being caught by Tariq hadn't affected her in a negative way.

'Sorry Harry, it's just, we've had a result with the surveillance. You need to see this.'

Harry nodded, and Tariq left the room. Giving Ruth one last glance, he nodded for her to follow him and they left his office together.


	3. Chapter 3

_On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a lovely silk scarf..._

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><p><strong>27<strong>**th**** December 2009**

Harry sighed as he watched Ruth work from within the confines of his office. Since their moment yesterday, she had been much more at ease with him and he hoped this was a sign of things to come. It had taken them a while to get past the events surrounding her return from Cyprus, but he still loved her terribly, and if she was finally warming up to him again, then he would have to step up his plan in the coming days.

He smiled as he watched her unconsciously place a hand on the book he had given her yesterday while she worked. It was still beside her computer on her desk, and this was the third time today she had touched it. _It's also the third time today she's had that silly smile plastered all over her face_ he thought to himself with some satisfaction. Yes, today he would find another gift to give to her, only this time, he would make sure they were alone.

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><p>Ruth knew that Harry was watching her. Every time she had to turn and speak to Ros at the next desk, she would surreptitiously glance in Harry's direction, and on more than one occasion she had caught him looking directly at her. Deciding that she rather liked it, she didn't let on that she had noticed in the hope he would carry on watching her. His kind and thoughtful gift yesterday had only served to remind her that she was madly in love with him, and she touched the book with her hand, thinking about their moment in his office yesterday. There was no doubt in her mind that she would have kissed him had Tariq not walked in and interrupted them. Trying to refocus on her work, she hoped there would be a similar opportunity soon.<p>

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><p>'Ruth, does that thing hold the key to all life? Instructions for the perfect Christmas cake? Next week's lottery numbers perhaps?'<p>

Ruth looked up as Ros spoke, not quite understanding where she was coming from. Following her eyes down, she noticed she again had her hand placed over Harry's gift to her, and she pulled it back quickly, hiding the offending appendage under the desk. Ros smirked, clearly enjoying teasing Ruth. She leaned over both of their desks, lowering her voice so as not to be heard by anybody else.

'You know, I heard _some_ men like to be thanked for gifts in more...practical ways. Just a thought.'

Ros promptly rose from her chair and walked away, leaving Ruth spluttering and blushing bright red. She was about to follow Ros and give her a piece of her mind when she thought better of it. No doubt she would get her words all muddled up, and she knew deep down that Ros meant well anyway, this was just her way of showing her approval of the situation. All thoughts were immediately purged from Ruth's brain as Harry exited his office, looking extremely agitated.

'Meeting room everybody. Now.'

Ruth sighed, wondering what crisis had befallen them now and followed Malcolm into the briefing room.

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><p>Ruth leaned on the railing and closed her eyes as the gentle breeze washed over her face. It had been a trying few hours and she needed to get away from everybody else for a few minutes to process it all. The reason behind Harry's agitation had been Juliet stirring up trouble in Whitehall for him again, and he had authorised the team to dig up whatever dirt was necessary on her to silence her once and for all.<p>

Having to go back into Juliet's past had dug up all kinds of dirt on Harry that Ruth could have done without seeing, and it was painful for her to think of the Harry she now knew as once having been such a different person. Hearing footsteps behind her, she didn't even need to turn to know that it was him. She had memorised the sound of his footfall long ago, and he always seemed to turn up when she was thinking about him anyway. He stood silent beside her, looking out over the city before speaking.

'I'm not that man anymore Ruth, you know that.'

It astounded her how he always seemed to know what she was thinking. For a man, his intuition and gift giving skills were above average indeed. Turning to him, she stroked his arm gently, revelling in the touch before dropping her hand limply to her side, scared that she might overstep some sort of boundary.

'I know.'

She wanted to say so much more, but it had been left unsaid for so long that she didn't know where to begin. Noticing a small box in Harry's right hand, the conversation was forgotten as he held it out for her to take. Lifting the lid off the box, she gasped when she saw what was inside. Harry took the beautiful silk scarf from the box and stepped closer to Ruth.

'May I?'

She merely nodded and her breathing visibly increased as he moved even closer, his arms finding their way around her neck as he wrapped the scarf around her. His fingers brushed the skin of her neck a few times as he moved, and it felt like a jolt of electricity was running through her every time. Scarf now attached, she looked up into Harry's eyes and smiled her appreciation at him. She didn't know what had brought on his sudden generosity but she wasn't about to stop him any time soon.

They were standing so close that their noses were almost touching. Harry could feel Ruth's breath on his chin and her lips were tantalisingly close. All he would have to do was move a few millimetres and they would be kissing. Deciding he had waited long enough for this moment, he prepared to move in when the door to the roof suddenly banged open and Malcolm's head popped round the corner.

'For the love of God.' Harry muttered under his breath, swivelling to face the city and leaning on the rail. Malcolm had the good grace to at least look embarrassed at having disturbed such an obviously intimate moment.

'Sorry Harry, er...thought you should know, we've got something on Juliet. In your own time though.'

Ruth turned to Harry and was about to speak when Malcolm's head appeared at the door again suddenly.

'And Ruth? Sorry. Again.'

Deciding she would have to laugh at the situation otherwise she might possibly cry, Ruth chuckled and again placed her hand on Harry's arm, squeezing softly.

'Come on, let's go and destroy that ex of yours, hmmm?'

On impulse, she quickly leaned over and placed a kiss on Harry's cheek, disappearing through the door before he could react. Reaching up to his face, Harry touched the piece of skin where Ruth's lips had been only moments before, a grin appearing on his face. Shaking himself to his senses, he vowed that next time, there would be no interruptions.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thank you all so much for the reviews so far. I hope this chapter makes up for the previous interruptions!**

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><p><em>On the fourth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a burned pasta bake...<em>

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><p><strong>28<strong>**th**** December 2009**

Harry's day had been highly satisfactory. They had finally dug up enough dirt on Juliet to make her go away forever. Looking up at the sound of the pods opening, he watched as Ros and Lucas made their way onto the grid. A smile crossed his face as he realised what their safe return meant; Juliet was now on a plane to somewhere far, far away with the promise of an extended stay in prison should she ever return. His only regret today was that he had been so busy he had barely had time to speak with Ruth.

After the incident yesterday on the roof, where they had been interrupted yet again, Harry had decided to invite Ruth for dinner that night. At his home there would be no interruptions, and they would be free to explore wherever their connection might take them. Somebody entered his office without knocking, and he knew without even looking up that it was Ruth.

'Introduce your knuckles to my door one day Ruth. Just a thought.'

Ruth smiled, knowing Harry was merely continuing the long running joke and he didn't really mind. The truth was, he liked the fact that she didn't knock; it meant he always knew it was her entering.

'Paperwork on Juliet, Harry. I'm going to head home now unless there was anything else?'

Harry stood suddenly, realising this was his last chance to ask Ruth to have dinner with him that night. Moving around his desk, he stood close to her; not so close that he invaded her personal space, but close enough that she became intoxicated by the smell of his aftershave and his mere presence.

'Ruth, I was wondering...would you like me to cook you dinner tonight? I mean, I have enough for two people, and it's just, well, you don't have to if you...'

Ruth cut off Harry's rambling by placing a finger on his lips. The feel of her skin against his lips and the close proximity they now shared rendered Harry speechless, and it was all he could do not to kiss her there and then. He was quite sure his heart rate went through the roof when Ruth leaned even closer to him, her breasts rubbing against his chest as she whispered in his ear.

'I'd love for you to make me dinner Harry. I'll be round at 7.'

Without waiting for a reply, Ruth smiled and left Harry's office, enjoying the effect she had on him. She retrieved her coat and bag from her desk and giggled as she exited the pods, noticing that Harry still hadn't moved a muscle since she had left his office, and was staring vacantly at the door she had just exited through. Leaving Thames House, she rushed home in anticipation of what the night would bring.

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><p>Harry rushed about the kitchen trying to do everything all at once. Ruth would be arriving any minute now and he still hadn't got dressed. Finishing the preparation of the food, he put the dish into the oven and raced upstairs. Debating for a minute whether to wear a tie or not, he opted for open collar and was half way down the stairs when the doorbell rang.<p>

Opening his front door, he stared at Ruth, noting her slight blush as she let his eyes roam. He came to his senses when he realised she was stood in the snow, and ushered her in quickly. Helping Ruth out of her coat, he turned to place it on a hook beside his own, and was lost for words when he turned back to face her. She was wearing tight jeans that hugged her figure in all the right places, and a deep red blouse that accentuated her cleavage perfectly without showing off too much. Deciding that he better say something before Ruth thought he had been struck mute, he cleared his throat and hoped his voice wouldn't show how nervous he was.

'The er...the dinner's in the oven. I kept it simple with pasta bake. Nobody can ruin that right? Would you like a glass of wine?'

Ruth nodded, and he pointed her in the direction of the living room, indicating she should make herself at home while he fetched the wine. He was taken by surprise when she leaned up and placed a kiss on his cheek before walking away. Touching his skin where her lips had been only moments before, he lets his thoughts wander briefly into unexplored territory before shaking himself back to the present.

Entering the living room, he was glad to see Ruth had removed her shoes and made herself at home. Taking this as a sign that she wouldn't be leaving any time soon, he poured her a healthy glass of red wine and seated himself beside her.

'I've locked the front door. The phone's off the hook. Scarlett's in the spare room with enough doggie treats to last her a lifetime. I doubt there'll be any interruptions tonight, Ruth.'

Ruth choked on her wine as the implications of Harry's statement hit her, and he immediately backtracked, noticing her shock at his words.

'No, I mean...I'm not expecting you to...what I meant to say was...'

Harry struggled for words, and cursed himself for constantly being so inarticulate around the woman he loved. Ruth took pity on him, knowing he would never be so presumptuous, and stroked his cheek softly with her free hand.

'It's alright Harry, I know what you meant. And...I'm glad.'

They both smiled at this, realising that for the very first time they were completely alone, with nobody to ruin the moment. Harry took Ruth's glass from her hand and placed it on the coffee table with his own. Shifting on the sofa so that his body was facing Ruth's, he cupped her cheeks with his hands, relishing the feel of her soft skin under his fingertips. Leaning forward slowly, he looked into her eyes to make sure it was what she really wanted, and was encouraged by the love he saw there. Closing the remaining gap, Harry pressed his lips gently to Ruth's in a sweet kiss that lasted only seconds, but to them both felt like a lifetime.

Ruth pulled away first with a contented sigh, but only long enough to move herself into a more comfortable position. She pulled Harry towards her by the back of his neck, allowing her fingers to travel through the soft curls she found there. Dimly, she thought that she liked it when he let his hair grow a little longer as she found the curls rather endearing, giving him a boyish look. All sane thoughts left her head at that moment though, when Harry pushed her back gently and she found herself leaning against the arm rest of the sofa, Harry's delightful weight pressing against her. Their lips hadn't parted yet and oxygen was becoming an issue. However Ruth was enjoying herself too much to tell Harry to stop.

Harry moved his lips reluctantly from Ruth's, but only as far as her neck as he trailed small kisses over the soft skin towards her ear. He nibbled on her earlobe, delighted at the various sounds he was eliciting from her. He was aware suddenly of her shifting underneath him and was momentarily saddened when he realised she was pushing him away. Her reason for stopping soon became apparent when he broke his lust induced haze and listened to what she was saying.

'Harry, the smoke, I think your kitchen's on fire.'

Harry leapt up from the sofa, running into the kitchen. Ruth followed at a more leisurely pace, amused that the man before her was capable of repelling wave after wave of terrorist attacks, yet couldn't think to set a timer on his oven. She watched, barely able to contain her laughter, as he wafted a towel around the kitchen to try and disperse some of the smoke. Satisfied that he had gotten rid of as much as he could, he placed the pasta bake on the table and Ruth could no longer keep her laughter at bay at the sight of the dish, now burnt to a crisp.

'Take away it is then.'


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Once again, I'm really chuffed with the response to this story. Please keep reviewing if you have the time, they make my day. This one's short, but hopefully sweet.**

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><p><em>On the fifth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, breakfast in bed...<em>

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><p><strong>29<strong>**th**** December 2009**

Ruth stirred as the smell of bacon wafted upstairs from the kitchen. Her stomach rumbled greedily but she pulled the covers over her head, hoping for at least another 15 minutes before she had to get up. Hearing her stomach growling again, she sighed and threw the covers off her before immediately pulling them back again to protect against the cold morning air. She was about to retrieve her clothes from the floor and go to find Harry when she heard him coming up the stairs and he appeared in the doorway moments later with a tray of food in his hands.

'Ah good, you're awake. I made you breakfast.'

He looked adorable standing there in t shirt and boxers with the tray of food in his hands, and she rejoiced inwardly at the sheer domesticity of it all. Wondering why she hadn't let this happen years ago, she moved to the side and allowed Harry to crawl in beside her. They started to eat in silence, Ruth snagging a few pieces of strawberry from a bowl as she watched Harry bite into a piece of toast.

'Harry, crumbs!'

He looked at Ruth sheepishly, sweeping the crumbs off the side of the bed with a strong hand. Leaning over the tray to finish the slice, he took the opportunity to kiss Ruth and things quickly became heated. Tray forgotten, he rolled her over so that his weight was pressing down on her and she felt his arousal against her. Kissing his way down her body, he reached over and took a piece of strawberry from the tray. Holding it between his teeth, he moved it over Ruth's body, enjoying the moans he was eliciting from her. Moving back up so that he was level with her face, he kissed her again and allowed her to suck the strawberry from his mouth. The breakfast tray was placed on the floor at that moment, completely forgotten about for the time being.

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><p>Leaving his house, Harry was confused when he turned from locking the door to find Ruth walking away from his car.<p>

'I can't turn up in these clothes to work Harry. And especially not with you. People will talk.'

She couldn't shake the sense of déjà vu at her words and the crestfallen look on Harry's face. Realising her mistake, she moved quickly towards him and kissed him slowly.

'I'm not having second thoughts, I'm just...not ready to tell yet. Is that OK?'

Harry looked reassured and nodded. Pulling her in for another kiss, he guided her back towards his car.

'That doesn't mean I can't give you a lift home though Ruth, get in.'

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><p>Ruth came through the pods at the exact moment Harry came thundering out of his office with a menacing look on his face. Sensing she was missing something important, she followed him to the briefing room where everybody else was already waiting.<p>

'Good of you to join us Ruth. Busy night?'

She ignored Ros' comment and accompanying smirk and grabbed the nearest file, reading up on the situation whilst listening to Harry rant at the same time.

'...and on our turf too...who do they think they are? Bloody Americans. Well I tell you this, they are NOT taking over the grid just like that. We are quite capable of looking after their President thank you very much. I want you all in here New Years Eve first thing.'

At their collective moans and groans Harry stopped ranting and looked incredulously around the room.

'I'm sorry, do we all have somewhere better to be? Is saving the country not _cool_ enough for you?'

Ruth had to suppress laughter at Harry's use of the word cool. She had not seen him this aggravated in a long time, but she found it incredibly sexy. Seeing his steely glare focussed on her, she realised he had noticed her smirking and promptly wiped the grin off her face.

'Something funny Ruth? Everybody else out.'

He waited until the rest of the team had filed out before letting his stern look slip. Giving her a small smile he seated himself in the chair beside her, swivelling it to face her.

'Did I do alright? Do you think they suspect?'

His boyish charm and eagerness to keep up their facade made Ruth fall in love with him just that little bit more, and she pecked him on the lips quickly before standing up. Staying that close to him for any longer would surely lead to inappropriate behaviour for the work place.

'Yes Harry, it was fine. This, however, isn't. Because you're making me want to kiss you. So let's go back to work shall we?'

She squeezed his arm gently and left the briefing room, putting on a commendable serious face as she returned to her desk to make it seem as though she had just been on the receiving end of a stern telling off. Harry waited a moment longer before leaving the room himself, his own stern face back in place. Striding into his office, he pulled his blinds down immediately, but not before catching Ruth's eye and, in the most un-Harry-like behaviour Ruth had ever experienced, he blew her a kiss.


	6. Chapter 6

_On the sixth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a diamond necklace..._

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><p><strong>30<strong>**th**** December 2009**

Ruth stretched her fingers as far as humanly possible, but the pen was still just out of her reach. She had been walking by the filing cabinets when she dropped it and it had rolled underneath. Not wanting to contribute to the already way over budget stationery order, she was currently on her hands and knees trying to retrieve the pen, but it remained just ever so slightly out of reach.

'Come on...come onnnnn!'

Ruth was so busy muttering to herself that she didn't notice the pair of feet that had come to stop beside her. She was alerted to the other person's presence when they coughed gently, and the unexpected noise made Ruth jump, causing her to bang her head on the edge of the filing cabinet. In doing this, she involuntarily jerked away from it, and her necklace became caught on the edge of the partially open drawer, snapping the chain in two. Harry was kneeling beside her in a second, concern written all over his face.

'Oh Ruth I am so sorry, I didn't mean to make you jump like that. Are you OK? Do you need a doctor? What about your necklace?'

Harry was rubbing the damaged area on Ruth's forehead with one hand, a lump already forming, and gently stroking her arm with his other. They caught each other's eyes and merely stared at each other, Harry's questions going unanswered. The spell was broken when Ros approached them, and they both stood quickly as she coughed, aware that they had been caught in a rather compromising situation.

'Sorry, not interrupting love's young dream am I? Here are the reports you asked for Harry.'

Without waiting for a response, Ros calmly walked away. _It's far too easy to wind those two up_ she thought, seating herself at her desk. She watched as they both turned a deep shade of red from her comment, Harry guiltily handing Ruth her broken necklace before they parted in the opposite direction. Shaking her head, Ros thought they couldn't make it more obvious they were together if they tried.

* * *

><p>Ruth stared at the two pieces of necklace lying broken on her desk. Her grandmother had given her that necklace and she wore it every day. Now she had lost it for one measly pen. Her attention was taken away from the necklace when she noticed Harry becoming very irate in his office. The CIA officers had arrived a day early for the President's New Years Eve visit and Harry was still extremely unhappy at having to share the grid with them. She could just imagine what he was saying to them this very minute.<p>

* * *

><p>'Absolutely not! No way. You are NOT getting access to our mainframe. You can watch. And assist. From a safe distance. You Yanks think you can come in and take over just like that? I don't think so.'<p>

The two junior officers shifted in their seats uncomfortably. They had known they would be on the receiving end of some resistance to their presence, but they had been truly unprepared for Harry Pearce in full anti-America mode.

'Sir, we need somewhere private to conduct our own surveillance of the operation. Perhaps if you could make your office avail...'

'My office? You want my office? It's taken me 8 years to get this chair how I want it. Do you think I'm going to let some trumped up little twerp from your embassy come and ruin it just like that? You can have the briefing room. Now get out, before my head explodes.'

The two men shared a glance before leaving hurriedly. Harry moved to the window and shut his blinds, but not before sharing a knowing glance with Ruth to indicate he wanted her in his office right away. She entered just as he took a rather large gulp of whisky from the glass in his hand. He slammed the empty glass down on his desk and Ruth flinched at the noise. She sat opposite Harry in silence, knowing he would speak when he was ready.

'Bloody Americans. Are you sure about your spirit of Atlanticism Ruth? Don't let them anywhere near our systems.'

He was breathing heavily, clearly still angry at his previous exchange. Silently, Ruth stood and moved behind Harry's chair. At his enquiring glance she motioned for him to face forward as she placed her hands on his shoulders. She began to massage gently, feeling how tense he was even through the material of his shirt. He groaned when she hit a particularly sensitive spot so she leaned forward and nibbled on his earlobe to take his mind off the pain, glad he had drawn his blinds before she entered.

Ruth's hands were starting to wander, gradually making their way further forward down Harry's chest. She knew things were getting out of hand by his heavy breathing but she found it impossible to stop. When Harry turned his head and captured her lips with his own, she let him continue and opened her mouth willingly to his tongue. With a level of restraint she never realised she had, she pulled away after a long few minutes and moved back to the other side of the desk.

'I think we had better wait until we are at home to finish this, don't you?'

Harry simply nodded, words failing him at that moment and she left him open mouthed to return to her desk. Upon her return, there was a suspicious looking package waiting for her, wrapped in the same packaging as the book of poetry that Harry had given her. She looked round at his office quickly, confusion etched all over her face.

'What? How? How did he...?'

She picked up the package and stalked over to Ros, who was seemingly very intrigued by something on her computer screen.

'Ros. Who delivered this? Are you helping him? This is getting out of hand.'

Ros looked up at Ruth and raised one eyebrow. Sighing, she took the package from Ruth and inspected it as if it would hold all the answers. Handing it back, she looked Ruth in the eye and responded in her usual sarcastic manner.

'Ruth, don't look a gift horse in the mouth. If _somebody_, and I'm not saying I know who, is giving you gifts, just accept them. Now if you don't mind, I'm in the middle of something incredibly important.'

Holding the package in one hand, Ruth used her other to turn Ros' screen, ignoring her protests. She laughed as she walked away, wondering how she had missed the memo about minesweeper being incredibly important.

Once back at her desk, she unwrapped the package, wondering to herself when Harry was going to stop giving her presents. Her hands shook as she opened the small box, revealing a beautiful diamond necklace that was almost identical to the one she had broken that morning. Without saying a word, she picked it up and walked into Harry's office.

'Ah Ruth, the dictionary defines knocking as...'

Harry didn't manage to get the rest of his sentence out as Ruth had crossed his office in a matter of seconds and launched herself at him, kissing him with all the passion she could muster.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Apologies for the extended wait for this, for some reason I decided it would be a good idea to move my business to a different location a week before Christmas! Anywho, this chapter is slightly different, in that it's Ruth giving the gift...Enjoy!**

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><p><em>On the seventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a kiss for New Year...<em>

* * *

><p><strong>31<strong>**st**** December 2009**

'For Christ's sake Ruth, they all know anyway. You're making far too big a deal out of this. You said yourself that Ros has made comments on more than one occasion.'

Harry paced back and forth in his office, extremely frustrated with the way the conversation had quickly descended into an argument. It had all started to go wrong when he had brushed his fingers over Ruth's at the end of the morning briefing and she had noticed Tariq and Jo exchanging a look. She had snatched her hand back faster than he thought possible and fled the room immediately. He knew he was in trouble the second he got back to his office and she was waiting for him. Realising Ruth was now talking, he quickly focussed his attention on what she was saying.

'That's not the _point_ Harry. You promised me you would keep this a secret until I was happy to tell. You're not doing a very good job of it. You know I don't like to be talked about like that.'

'They're going to talk no matter what we do Ruth. We might as well be honest with them. They are the closest thing we have to friends, after all.'

Ruth gave Harry a look that suggested he should shut up before he made things any worse. He thought to himself that he couldn't possibly make things any worse until his next words were out of his mouth before he even thought about what he was saying.

'Just come here and kiss me darling, I don't like arguing.'

Ruth let out an exasperated sigh and left Harry's office without another word. He stared at the empty space she had just vacated wondering how on earth he had managed to make such a pig's ear out of the situation.

* * *

><p>The team had been working solidly for ten hours, and New Year was fast approaching. The President's visit had gone off without any problems, and he was currently safely ensconced at number 10 without any imminent threat. The CIA operatives that had taken over the briefing room on the grid had been surprisingly subdued and hadn't caused any problems, which Harry was extremely thankful for. The only thing that worried him was that Ruth hadn't spoken to him since their argument that morning. He hoped that the impromptu New Year's Eve party they had decided to throw on the grid would give him a chance to talk to her.<p>

* * *

><p>Seeing Tariq approaching wearing an incredibly oversized party hat and clutching two glasses of beer, Harry quickly made his excuses to Ros and slipped out to the roof for some time on his own. So far, Ruth had ignored every attempt of his at talking and he was running out of ideas. Slumping against the handrail, his hopes were raised when he heard the door open and close behind him, and he couldn't hide his disappointment when it was Jo that appeared next to him.<p>

'She loves you, you know.'

'I beg your pardon?'

Harry turned to face Jo and could tell by the way her eyes were staring off into the distance that she was already fairly intoxicated.

'She _looooooves_ you. I hear her sometimes, at night, talking to herself about you. She doesn't realize I can hear her. But I can.'

At this admission, a triumphant smile appeared on Jo's face, as if she was pleased with herself at having been eaves dropping on her friend.

'I think you've had enough for one night Jo, let's go and get you a glass of water.'

He took her by the arm, intending to guide her back down off the roof but she resisted.

'Nooooooo Harry. I can tell you've fallen out, she's been in the toilets most the day crying. We are NOT leaving here until you promise me you will apologise for whatever you did.'

Harry dropped his grip from Jo's arm and turned to face her, becoming slightly angry at her presumption.

'Me apologise? Let me tell you something Jo. I did nothing wrong. I love Ruth, more than any of you here realise when you spend most of the day talking about us behind our backs. You want to know the reason we fell out? It's because she's ashamed of me. She won't be seen with me unless it's in the safety of our own homes. And that's because of the gossip that you and your colleagues spread around. So no Jo, I won't be apologising for wanting to be able to touch the woman I love without fear of her flinching away from me, or having to deal with the smirks and mutterings from you lot.'

Harry began to storm off before he got himself into even more trouble, knowing he had said far too much, when a noise behind him stopped him in his tracks.

'I'm sorry Harry.'

Jo had sobered up considerably at Harry's revelation and she couldn't help the guilt that spread through her at the thought of her actions harming their relationship. She strode purposefully up to Harry and stopped before him, wary of how angry he currently looked.

'It won't happen any longer Harry. We just...got carried away I suppose. There's no excuse. I love Ruth like a sister, and I want to see her happy. You make her happy Harry. You won't need to worry about us anymore, I'll take care of Tariq and Lucas. Go get her.'

The two spooks shared a silent moment together on top of the windy roof, and neither noticed Ruth stood just inside the doorway, having heard every word of their conversation, with tears streaming down her cheeks.

* * *

><p>Harry and Jo returned to the party none the wiser that their conversation had been overheard by Ruth. The countdown for New Year had started on the television and Harry was surprised when Ruth approached him, a smile on her face. He could tell she was nervous by the way she was fiddling with the empty glass in her hands, so he gently took it from her and waited patiently for her to speak, noting the countdown on the TV in the background as it came closer and closer to midnight.<p>

'I'm sorry Harry. You're right. I don't want to hide anymore. I love you.'

She moved to kiss him but he resisted, aware that all eyes in the room were on them rather than the television.

'Ruth? Everybody's watching.'

She wrapped her arms around Harry's neck and leaned up to whisper in his ear.

'Let them watch. I don't care.'

As the clocks began to chime, Ruth pulled Harry in for a kiss to which he eagerly responded. Dimly, Harry could hear applause coming from around the grid and assumed they were all merely celebrating the turn of the year. He pulled away from Ruth after a long moment and rested his forehead against hers.

'Happy New Year Ruth.

'Happy New Year Harry.'

He finally looked away from Ruth and saw that all eyes in the room were on them, and the applause he had heard had actually been directed at the two of them. He held tightly to Ruth's hand, prepared for her to flee, but was surprised when she squeezed back and smiled at their colleagues. His surprise only increased when Ruth slid her free hand up over his chest and came to rest it on his cheek, pulling him towards her for another kiss, aware that everybody was watching. Finally, she broke away from him and moved to join their friends, taking a glass of champagne from Lucas and laughing along with Jo and Tariq. He watched her for a minute, aware that at this moment he was quite possibly the happiest man alive.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Sorry it's short again, but thank you all for the reviews, I'm glad you're enjoying it. I tried really hard not to stray into M rated territory for this one, and I think I just about managed it. Apologies to anybody who may think otherwise. Hope you like...**

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><p><em>On the eighth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, new underwear...<em>

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><p><strong>1<strong>**st**** January 2010**

Ruth awoke to find herself alone in Harry's bed. Feeling disappointed that he hadn't woken her before he left for work, she rolled over to find a tray containing toast and juice, along with an envelope and a large box on the bedside table. Interest piqued, she ignored the food and drink and went first for the envelope. Opening it carefully, she pulled out a single piece of paper with Harry's unmistakable scrawl on it and began to read.

_Ruth,_

_I've had to go into work for a few hours this morning, but you aren't needed. I'll be back by lunch so please make yourself at home in my absence. I've left a gift for you in the box, I hope it's not too presumptuous of me to hope you'll be making use of it when I get home._

_All my love,_

_Harry_

_X_

Ruth smiled to herself at Harry's thoughtfulness before placing the letter to one side and taking the large box. Upon opening it, she wasn't sure whether to be shocked, insulted, or laugh out loud.

* * *

><p>Harry was whistling to himself as he let himself into his home. The Home Secretary had kept him a little longer than he had expected and he was eager to get back to Ruth to see what she had thought of her gift.<p>

'Ruth? I'm home. Where are you?'

He called out to the seemingly empty house and nobody answered. Mildly intrigued, he placed his coat and gloves on the rack and moved further into the hallway, stopping when the stairs came into view. At the bottom of the wooden staircase was a pile of rose petals, thrown haphazardly around the place and leading up the stairs and out of sight. He smirked to himself when he realised what this meant. Ruth had taken his gift well.

He undid his tie and threw it carelessly behind him as he climbed the stairs slowly, calling out Ruth's name again but still receiving no answer. He followed the trail of rose petals into his bathroom until they came to a stop before the bath, but still there was no sign of Ruth. The bath however, was filled with steaming hot water, candles lit everywhere as if somebody was preparing to get in. Beginning to get confused, he turned to leave in order to check his bedroom but started in shock when he saw her standing in the doorway.

'Hi Harry.'

Her voice was sensual, and it sent shockwaves through him that turned him on immensely, so much so that he struggled to speak.

'You're ah...you're wearing the um, the gift.'

Ruth looked down at herself, delighting at the reaction her attire had had on Harry. There had been no doubt in her mind that he would have liked it; he picked it out for her after all, but it was still nice to know that he desired her this much. Twirling the belt of the extremely short and extremely sheer black lace dressing gown in her hand, she began to move closer to Harry and almost laughed as he began to look a little panicked.

'What this? Oh yes. A little..._impractical_ though. Don't you think?'

By now Ruth was standing almost toe to toe with Harry and she pulled the belt of the gown from its loops, throwing it around Harry's neck and using it to pull him into a hot searing kiss. It was a while before he pulled away from her, his breathing heavy.

'That's because you're supposed to wear something underneath it too Ruth.'

'No more talking Harry.'

Ruth closed the gap between them once more and kissed Harry forcefully, pushing him back against the bathroom wall. His hands wandered eagerly underneath the tiny garment that barely covered Ruth's body and she moaned at his touch. Deciding that Harry was wearing entirely too many clothes, Ruth quickly dispensed of his shirt and trousers and began to run her hands over his strong chest. She loved the way his skin felt under her hands and would happily spend the whole night simply caressing him.

As it was, Harry had other plans and in one swift move, he slipped the dressing gown off Ruth's body and lifted her up, causing her to shriek in surprise. Placing her gently into the still hot bath, he dispensed with his boxers before following her in. They soaped each other slowly, taking their time to explore the other's body. Once clean, they made love in the bubbly water, not caring one bit that most of it ended up on the bathroom floor.

* * *

><p>'I'm telling you Harry, we are NEVER doing that again. Look at this mess!'<p>

Harry chuckled at Ruth's frustration but soon stopped when he felt a sodden towel hit him squarely on the back with a squelch. They had spent the last 15 minutes trying to soak all the water up off the bathroom floor but it seemed they had created Niagara Falls with their over enthusiastic lovemaking in the bath earlier. There were now four completely soaked towels in a pile by the door and still the floor was wet through. With a sigh, Harry stood and stretched his back. Seeing Ruth do the same, he took her by the hand and pulled her out of the bathroom.

'Let it dry by itself. We've got the worst of it up.'

Leading her to the bedroom, they fell onto the bed together in a tangle of limbs, lips finding each other easily. They had only made love a handful of times but each time felt so right, like they fit together perfectly. Harry briefly thought they might be acting like love struck teenagers before dismissing the thought from his head. He had waited years for this, and the pair of them had a lot of catching up to do.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: This will be all from me until after Christmas. I hope it's a good enough chapter to keep you all going for a couple of days :) Merry Christmas everybody!**

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><p><em>On the ninth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a key to his house...<em>

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><p><strong>2<strong>**nd**** January 2010**

Ruth moaned in pleasure as she felt Harry's fingers drawing tiny shapes and patterns on her stomach. She could tell it was late morning by the position of the sun shining in through the window and momentarily panicked before remembering they had the day off today. Turning to face the man of her dreams, she finally opened her eyes to find him staring at her intently.

'Penny for your thoughts?'

The movement of his fingers on her stomach stopped, and she grasped his hand in her own, giving it a comforting squeeze when he said nothing.

'What is it Harry? You're worrying me. You don't regret...'

Ruth's uncertainty seemed to jerk Harry into action and he pulled her close to him, kissing the top of her head.

'God no. No Ruth that's not it at all. I was just thinking about...something.'

Placing both hands on Harry's chest she pushed him away slightly so that she could get a better look at his face. He seemed to have relaxed a bit now and didn't look so worried.

'Something like...'

Harry sighed but again said nothing and Ruth resigned herself to the fact he wasn't yet prepared to tell her. She began to move away from him to get out of bed when he reached behind himself and placed a small box between them. Her heart stopped at what she thought might be inside and her shock obviously showed on her face as Harry quickly spoke.

'No, it's not what it looks like Ruth. Open it.'

Taking it in her hands, Ruth turned the box over before finally opening the lid. Inside was a key and a piece of paper with three different five digit numbers written on it in Harry's tidy hand writing.

'Ruth...I love you. I love spending time with you and I love waking up next to you. Will you move in with me?'

He waited patiently as Ruth simply stared at the contents of the box until finally she looked up at him. He sighed in relief when he saw that she was smiling and they kissed passionately.

'When do you want me to move in Harry?'

'How does today sound?'

* * *

><p>'Ouch! For Christ's sake. Fidget!'<p>

Ruth dropped the box she had been carrying as Fidget ran across her feet, causing her to stumble. She leaned against the wall to try and catch her breath before attempting to pick the heavy box back up. Groaning with the exertion, she felt her fingers beginning to give way just as Harry came in through the front door. He evaluated the situation before him in a matter of seconds and rushed to take the box from Ruth.

'Ruth, what did I tell you? Let me do all the heavy lifting.'

Ruth wiped her brow with the end of her sleeve, puffing her cheeks out in the process.

'You know Harry, I love you but you can be so very sexist at times. I can manage.'

'It didn't look like you were from where I was standing.' Harry muttered under his breath.

Ruth gave him a look before wandering back into the kitchen, calling out behind her as she went.

'I heard that!'

She looked around the bare room, thinking how much bigger it seemed now it was devoid of furniture. Ruth had some fond memories of this house, but more often than not it had been a lonely place for her, with nights in front of the TV sipping red wine and thinking about Harry. Now she couldn't contain her excitement that she would be living with him. She picked Fidget up as he wandered past, twirling him around as she danced about the kitchen.

'Oh Fidge, I'm moving in with him! You know what this means don't you? A new friend for you. Scarlett is adorable, I'm sure you'll get on fine.'

Fidget was struggling to escape from Ruth's grasp, clearly not happy with his impromptu journey through the air, and he scampered off as soon as his feet hit the floor. On watching him run away, Ruth realised Harry was stood in the kitchen doorway with a huge smirk on his face.

'Um...how long have you been stood there?'

Harry tried and failed to keep a straight face, laughter escaping from his lips. This was all the answer Ruth needed and she shoved him playfully in the chest.

'Impossible man!'

He held her tightly against his chest; partly to stop her from hitting him again but mostly so that he could feel her warmth. They stayed like that for a while, Ruth resting her head on Harry's chest and listening to his heartbeat until a cough behind them alerted them to the fact they were no longer alone.

'Ahem...keep it clean lovebirds. The cavalry's here now.'

Jo stood awkwardly in the hall, Tariq behind her peeping over her shoulder. Ruth had enlisted them to help move her stuff since they all had the day off, and they got to work quickly, wanting to be done before darkness fell.

* * *

><p>Ruth collapsed onto the sofa in their living room and sighed. It felt good to think of things as theirs instead of hers or Harry's. She watched as Harry came into the room carrying a plate piled high with Chinese food and a bottle of wine. After their day of lugging huge boxes back and forth, Ruth could now claim to be living with Harry, a statement that pleased her no end. Taking the tray from Harry, she dug into the food straight away, not realising how hungry she actually was.<p>

Harry watched her with amusement on her face. He didn't know how she put away so much food and still kept her amazing figure, but he wasn't about to complain. Snagging a spring roll from the tray, he bit into it eagerly, feeling his own stomach protest at the lack of food he had ingested today. Once food and drink had been consumed, the two of them got comfortable on the sofa with a film. Harry put his arm around Ruth's shoulders and pulled her closer to him so that he could whisper in her ear.

'Ruth...this morning. When I gave you that box, you thought it was...you know. And you didn't look too happy. Don't you want to get married?'

Ruth placed her hand on Harry's cheek, pulling him in for a kiss before she answered.

'Of course I want to marry you Harry. It's just...well I'm hoping that when...if you propose, it'll be a bit better than a tiny box first thing in the morning.'

Harry smiled at Ruth's admission, pulling her even closer to him and running his hands over her arms in a loving gesture.

'I love that you're here.'

She looked up at him and smiled, pecking his lips.

'I love that I'm here too.'


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: So, I'm probably stretching the boundaries of reality a little bit with timing on this one, but I did look it up on the internet and it would be physically possible soooo...Hope you like!**

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><p><em>On the tenth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a pregnancy test...<em>

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><p><strong>3<strong>**rd**** January 2010**

Harry strode out onto the grid from his office and looked around to make sure his whole team was there. Automatically he began to worry when he couldn't see Ruth.

'Everybody, briefing room now. Has anybody seen Ruth?'

He waited patiently as the team grabbed their various folders needed for the briefing and shuffled past him, each shrugging their shoulders. Finally Jo walked past him and leaned in ever so slightly so that the others wouldn't hear what she had to say.

'She's in the toilets, been puking all morning. Have you given her food poisoning Harry?'

'Thanks for that Miss Portman. Tell Ros to start, I'll find Ruth and we'll catch up to you.'

Harry watched the briefing room door slide shut before turning towards the toilets. He knocked softly on the door, not wanting to just barge in and invade Ruth's privacy.

'Ruth? Is everything OK? Jo says you've been feeling ill.'

He waited a minute and could hear rustling noises coming from inside the bathroom. Stepping back slightly when the door began to open, Ruth finally came into view looking rather worse for wear. Harry immediately caressed her cheek with his hand, concern showing on his face.

'Christ Ruth, you look awful.'

Ruth could only manage a weak smile at this, and when she spoke her voice was weak, which only served to increase Harry's concern.

'Thanks for that Harry. I love you too.'

'No, what I meant was...'

Ruth cut him off by placing a hand on his arm and squeezing gently, feeling him relax under her touch.

'I know what you meant Harry. I've just been feeling a bit under the weather this morning that's all. I'll be fine.'

Harry regarded her cautiously before seeming to accept her explanation. Taking her hand, they made their way to the briefing room, entering whilst Ros was mid sentence.

'...so we need to make sure that nothing gets back to...oh Harry, Ruth, nice of you to join us. As I was saying, we need to make sure nothing gets back to the Home Secretary until this is all over. I think we all know what his opinion of the operation would be. Ruth, do you have your intelligence report on the target?'

Ruth nodded, still looking pale and made her way to the front of the room. Pressing a button on the remote, a picture of a middle aged Eastern European man flashed up on the screen.

'Nikolai Davidov. Russian politician known for taking bribes in exchange for...for...'

A worried glance was exchanged around the room as Ruth struggled for her next words. Harry was about to stand and ask if she was OK when she put her hand over her mouth and ran from the room.

* * *

><p>Ruth had been in the toilets for half an hour since fleeing the briefing room and still nobody had come to check on her. She was slightly disappointed that Harry hadn't found her, but she supposed he was busy finishing off her report. The truth was, she had stopped vomiting around twenty minutes ago, but was hiding in the bathroom out of embarrassment at having made such a scene in front of the rest of the team. Looking at herself in the mirror, she deemed herself ready to return to work and was about to make for the door when it opened slightly and Harry's head appeared in the gap.<p>

'Safe to come in?'

Ruth nodded and he quickly made his way over to her, a brown paper bag in his hand. Curiosity got the better of her and she took it from him, finding no resistance. Once opened, she looked up at Harry then back down into the bag again several times before being able to find her voice.

'Harry, you do know what this is don't you?'

'Yes Ruth, despite reports to the contrary, I am not completely inept when it comes to matters such as this.'

Ruth again couldn't help but look between the bag and Harry's face, seeing the amused smirk appear as he laughed at her apparently odd behaviour. Slowly she took the item out of the bag and cradled it in her hands as if it would explode at any moment.

'Harry...this is a pregnancy test. A...a pregnancy test. We only slept together for the first time five days ago!'

Harry took the test from Ruth and began to open the box, laying the contents out on the sink as he spoke.

'That's correct Ruth. But if I remember rightly, you made a comment two days ago that your erm...you know...well, that you were _late_ shall we say. So I did some research, and turns out you can check this sort of thing so soon. So go on, off you go in there.'

Ruth stared at Harry in astonishment that he had actually thought of this option, done his research and gotten a test in the time she had been hiding in the toilets. _He really is a truly remarkable man_ she thought to herself. Taking the test from him in her shaking hands she moved to the nearest cubicle. Harry waited patiently until Ruth emerged a moment later and she placed the test on the sink so that they could both see it clearly. Looking at Harry, she had to stifle a laugh at the sheer concentration on his face as he stared at the small piece of plastic before him.

The silence was deafening as they waited for the result to appear. Neither wanted to say anything to ruin the moment, but as the seconds wore on, the lack of talking seemed to create a tense atmosphere. Looking over at Ruth, Harry could see she was worried, so he took her hand in his own, feeling how much smaller hers was compared to his own.

'Ruth, no matter what this says, I love you. And I would love to raise a child with you if that's what's going to happen.'

Ruth could feel the tears tugging at the corner of her eyes threatening to escape at Harry's words. She pulled him close to her and kissed him soundly, not breaking away until the alarm on Harry's watch began to beep, signalling that the test was ready to view. Reaching out to pick it up, Ruth suddenly snatched her hand back and buried her face in Harry's broad chest.

'I can't look Harry. Will you?'

She felt him kiss the top of her head and reach out for the test. He didn't say anything immediately so she looked up to see him looking extremely disappointed.

'Oh, it's positive isn't it? It's OK Harry, I know you didn't really want a baby with me. I don't expect you to...'

'Ruth...stop talking.'

Harry interrupted Ruth as she began to babble, taking hold of her chin to make her look at him.

'I am disappointed Ruth. But I'm not disappointed because it's positive, I'm disappointed because it's negative.'

He watched Ruth's face as his words sank in, and the second he saw the tears appear he pulled her into a tight embrace and let her cry, unable to find the words to comfort her.


	11. Chapter 11

_On the eleventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a public proposal..._

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><p><strong>4<strong>**th**** January 2010**

Harry held Ruth tightly in his arms as she slept, desperate to visit the toilet but not wanting to wake her up. The previous night they had sat up until the early hours of the morning crying and talking about the negative pregnancy test. He hadn't realised it would affect her so badly when it turned out be negative.

Ruth shifted in her sleep, her knee nudging him in the stomach and he felt his bladder complain at the movement. Deciding he couldn't wait any longer, he tried to extricate himself from Ruth's grasp without waking her. He managed to get his body free, but she was clinging on to his left hand for dear life. With no alternative, he decided to wake her.

'Ruth...Ruth wake up.'

Ruth stirred in her sleep but didn't wake so Harry gently pushed her shoulder, hoping that would do the trick. In fact, his action had the opposite effect, Ruth rolling over away from his touch and taking his hand with her. He wasn't prepared for the movement, and fell face first onto the mattress with a loud oomph. Still he had not managed to wake Ruth, and he stared at her for a moment wondering how on earth she had managed to sleep through the last five minutes. Resigning himself to the fact he wasn't going to get to the toilet any time soon, he pressed his body against hers and tried to go back to sleep. The second he felt himself drifting off Ruth began tugging on his arm.

'Harry...Harry get off me I need to get up. Wake up Harry!'

With an exasperated sigh Harry rolled over and away from Ruth, pulling on his boxers and heading straight for the toilet.

'Where do you think you're going?'

He heard Ruth's muffled voice as she struggled to put on her pyjama top and he turned to face her.

'Well I'm not going in here to make breakfast am I?'

'But...that's why I'm up. I need to go in there.'

Harry stared at Ruth and she could practically see the cogs turning in his head. Eventually he walked back over to her and threw himself onto the bed.

'Fine, fine. You go first.'

He lifted his head up to watch her walk away, enjoying the sight of her in the thin cotton top and her black lace underwear. She had reached the doorway when she turned to face him.

'You don't mind if I have a shower while I'm in here do you? Thanks.'

The bathroom door was closed and locked before Harry even had a chance to process what Ruth had said. He let his head fall back onto the bed with a frustrated sigh, trying not to think about anything water related.

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><p>Once Harry had finally managed to relieve himself, the couple left his house and hurried into work, already late due to Ruth's inability to concentrate on anything when Harry wandered about the house topless. Coming through the pods, they were greeted with Ros who immediately took Harry to one side, whispering quietly.<p>

Ruth left them to it and dropped her coat and bag at her desk. She had just switched her computer on when Ros approached her, apparently finished with Harry.

'I need this decoding by the end of the day Ruth. Six sent it over from Paris. Some important operation that's taking place tomorrow . The intel is vital to the success of the mission. Can you handle it?'

Ruth took the flash drive from Ros and inserted it into her computer. Various numbers and letters appeared on her screen and it only took her a moment to decide how it needed to be decoded.

'Not a problem Ros. Shall I take it to you or Harry when I'm done?'

Ros cocked her head slightly and for a split second Ruth thought she saw a flash of worry on her face before what was known around the grid as the 'Ros look' appeared once more. _Must have been imagining it_ Ruth thought to herself.

'I think you'll know who to take it to once you've decoded it Ruth.'

Watching Ros walk away, Ruth couldn't help but think something was amiss. The conversation had been very un Ros-like indeed. She vowed she would get to the bottom of it before the day was out. Starting up a basic decryption algorithm on the data she left her desk to make a cup of tea.

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><p>The day had gone slowly for both Ruth and Harry. There were no serious threats to speak of, and Harry had been called away to JIC meetings or most of the afternoon. That had left Ruth with the unenviable task of simply watching her computer decode the data from Ros. It was much like watching paint dry, and she hoped it was almost finished. As if reading her mind, her computer bleeped to signal the data was ready to be accessed and she eagerly opened the files. Confusion covered her features when she opened the first file, and it only increased with each new file that she looked at.<p>

She had been so engrossed with her screen that she hadn't seen Harry stealthily sneak up behind her. He placed his hand on her shoulder to signal his arrival, laughing when she nearly jumped out of her seat at the surprise.

'That first file is the location. A beautiful church tucked away in the far corners of Paris. The second is the travel information we'll need if we are to make it there on time. That third file is a list of well known dress shops in the vicinity where you could choose suitable attire. And the final file...that's a list of um...of hotels that we could stay at.'

Harry swivelled Ruth around in her chair and it was then she noticed he was down on one knee. It was around the word 'church' that she had realised what he was planning but it was still a shock to see him kneeling before her. Especially with Tariq, Ros and Jo looking on from across the grid. The sound of his voice caused her to look directly at him for the first time since he had announced his arrival and she could see tears threatening to fall onto his cheeks.

'Ruth...I hope you don't think I'm being too presumptuous. But after all, that is how I got you to go on a date with me all those years ago, being presumptuous. I'm babbling now aren't I...Christ...What I mean to say is...Ruth Evershed, I love you more than life itself. Will you marry me?'

Ruth glanced around at her friends and saw them staring back at her expectantly. Jo even nodded her head and motioned towards Harry as if to hurry her along. She turned to face him and found herself unable to speak, choked with emotion. Throwing herself forwards, she embraced him, kissing every part of skin she could find. Pulling back, she finally found her voice.

'I love you Harry. Of course I'll marry you. Now, what time do we have to leave?'


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: So this is it, the last chapter. I'll actually be quite sorry to see this one end, I've really enjoyed writing it. Thank you to everybody who has left a review, I'm glad you've enjoyed reading it too. I hope this is a fitting end.**

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><p><em>On the twelfth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, the perfect wedding...<em>

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><p><strong>5<strong>**th**** January 2010**

Ruth was a bundle of nerves as they walked along the cobbled path. They had travelled through the night in order to make it to Paris on time and her tiredness was doing nothing to help the feeling in her stomach. This time yesterday she had been getting ready to go to work, and now she was on her way to get married to the love of her life. She was half waiting for something to happen; a disaster, or Harry changing his mind, but nothing had come up yet.

They had stopped off at Malcolm's house on the way to the train station, another huge surprise for Ruth. Harry had planned ahead yet again and asked him to be a witness, something which made her love him just that little bit more. Jo was present as the other witness, and together the four of them made their way through the crowded Paris town centre.

'OK Harry, Malcolm, you two go and amuse yourselves for a few hours, I need to help Ruth find the perfect dress.'

Ruth looked up as Jo spoke, fear in her eyes.

'Oh no...no. I don't want anything fancy. Let's just go to the nearest shop, honestly.'

Harry looked incredulously at Ruth, not for the first time marvelling at how unlike most women she was. It was her uniqueness that made him love her so very much. Taking her by the shoulders, he pulled her to one side briefly.

'Sweetheart, despite your protests I know you've probably been dreaming of this day since you were a little girl.' Ruth blushed at Harry's words but he carried on regardless. 'I want you to go with Jo and find something that will render me speechless when I see you in it this afternoon.'

Ruth nodded, kissing Harry. They started to get carried away when an awkward cough alerted them to the fact Jo and Malcolm were standing beside them, both looking rather embarrassed. Harry slipped his credit card into Ruth's hand and turned to leave.

'Wait, Harry. I don't know the pin number.'

Harry turned back and leaned in close to Ruth, his lips grazing her ear as he spoke making her shiver with excitement.

'2610.'

Ruth stood still for a moment as the numbers seemed familiar to her, until something clicked in her head.

'Hang on...that's my...Harry, that's my birthday!'

Harry had the good grace to look a little embarrassed and made for a hasty exit, patting Malcolm on the shoulder and walking away as Jo began to giggle.

'Oh Ruth, he's so cute isn't he. I never knew big bad Harry Pearce was such a softy!'

'I wouldn't let him hear you say that, unless you want to get posted to Siberia.'

The two women continued giggling as they made their way down the high street, veering into a shop that Jo claimed Ruth _had_ to look in for the perfect dress.

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><p>Harry was due to arrive any minute to take Ruth to the church and she was getting more and more stressed by the second. Jo was trying her best, but her hair just would not go how she wanted it.<p>

'Ruth, I say just pull it all together and tie it up. He'll like the extra skin on show.'

Ruth blushed, still not quite used to her friends speculating on what Harry would and would not find attractive about her. Deciding to take Jo's advice though, she scooped her hair up into a loose bun and tied it up, letting a few bits hang loosely around her face. She looked at herself in the mirror and had to admit it did make her look more attractive and she knew how much Harry enjoyed kissing her neck so she supposed Jo hadn't been far wrong there either. Jo fussed around her making some finishing touches before stepping back to admire her work.

'Ruth...you look just beautiful.'

Standing and looking in the full length mirror, Ruth had to agree. The dress she had brought was a midnight blue, and clung to her figure in all the right places. It wasn't cut too low at the front, giving just a teasing view of her cleavage. With her hair up, her neck and shoulders were bare, showing off just the right amount of skin. Finally, the shoes she wore were not too high but still high enough to show off her perfectly toned calves through the slit in her dress when she walked. In all, she was quite pleased with herself, and she hoped Harry would be too.

A knock on the door signalled their arrival and Jo moved to let the two men in. Both wore black suits and bow ties and Ruth thought Harry looked the most handsome she had ever seen him. He turned to face her after greeting Jo and the moment he laid his eyes on her he froze. Never in his life had he seen anybody as beautiful as Ruth. She looked simply stunning. Aware that everybody was staring at him and Ruth was beginning to blush under his intense gaze he attempted to speak, but when he opened his mouth no words came out.

'I think you've broken him Ruth.' Jo giggled beside her.

Ruth stepped closer to Harry, kissing him briefly.

'Is this what you meant by render you speechless?'

Harry coughed to clear his throat and attempted to speak again. This time he managed to get out some words, but his voice was hoarse and he didn't think he made much sense.

'Erm, yes. Wonderful. Brilliant. Yes Ruth.'

He cursed himself for not being able to put an intelligent sentence together around her. Malcolm smirked, deciding it was time to intervene and save his friend's embarrassment.

'Shall we go ladies? The church awaits us.'

He held out his arm for Ruth to take and she gladly did, allowing him to lead her out of the hotel and towards the place where she would become Mrs Pearce.

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><p>They stood outside the hotel, preparing to say goodbye to Malcolm and Jo. Ruth held Harry's hand tightly, her wedding ring shining in the sunlight. She was disappointed her friends couldn't stay longer, but the grid was understaffed and couldn't afford to miss their presence for another day. As a wedding present, Malcolm had offered to come out of retirement for a week and help Ros run the grid so that they could enjoy a proper honeymoon, of which Ruth was eternally grateful. She couldn't wait to spend a whole week with Harry without having to worry about terrorists or bombs.<p>

Once the car had disappeared from view, they entered the hotel. Ruth quickly opened the door to their room but found her progress blocedk by Harry's arm across her front.

'I believe there's an age old tradition where I must carry you over the threshold?'

Ruth laughed, not believing Harry was serious and tried to duck underneath his arm. He moved quickly and pulled her legs from under her, hoisting her up into his arms. Ruth let out a shriek, not expecting Harry would actually go through with it. He carried her into the room and kicked the door shut behind him, ready to start married life together with a bang.

The End


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Seems I had a bit of trouble letting go of this fic. Since theoofoof asked so nicely, here is an epilogue. As epilogues go, it's not really a definitive ending as such, more like a glimpse into their lives one year on. I hope you like it anyway...**

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><p><strong>One year later...<strong>

**24****th**** December 2011**

'No Harry, I don't care what you say, I'm not wearing _that_ when I look like _this.'_

Ruth gesticulated wildly between the beautiful silk gown Harry currently clutched in his hands and the growing bump on her stomach. Harry sighed, knowing he had not won the argument yet. Ever since Ruth had entered her 6th month of pregnancy her mood swings had become increasingly erratic. Throwing the garment onto the chair behind him so that it was out of Ruth's sight, he moved towards his wife and cradled her head in his hands, trying his best to placate her.

'Sweetheart, how many times am I going to have to tell you? You look even more beautiful now that you're carrying my child. I love you more than I ever thought possible. And the last thing you look is fat, trust me.'

Ruth seemed to calm down somewhat at Harry's words, and he knew the argument was swinging his way when she let him place gentle kisses over her lips and chin. He backed her up to the bed, allowing himself to get carried away. The finishing line was in sight, he could almost taste victory, when it was snatched viciously out of his grasp.

'No Harry. You can't distract me like that again. I'm not going to be seen in public when I'm the size of a house.'

'But Ruth,' Harry began to protest. '...people see you at work...'

Ruth's head snapped round so fast Harry was surprised she didn't give herself whiplash.

'You finish that sentence Mr Pearce and you'll be sleeping on the sofa for the rest of the week.'

Harry gulped, knowing Ruth was perfectly capable of carrying out such a threat; he had gotten intimate with their sofa for five days last month when he had accidently given Ruth a sandwich with tuna on it. How was he to know it had been placed on her list of 'no go' foods that morning? Bringing himself back to the present, he realised Ruth was stood waiting for him to answer. She may as well have been tapping her foot with her arms crossed she looked so impatient.

'Well _Mrs_ Pearce, I was going to say people see you at work and are constantly commenting on how much pregnancy suits you. That you positively glow and that they've never seen you happier. But...OK, I'll shut up now.'

The finishing line came back into sight for Harry when Ruth seemed to soften at his words. She sat down on the edge of the bed and reached for the item of clothing that had started the whole discussion in the first place. Running it through her fingers and playing with the soft fabric, she looked shyly up at Harry and his heart melted, as it always did when she looked at him with such love.

'Do...do people really say that about me?' Ruth asked.

Harry sat beside her and played with her hair. Despite them being married for almost a year she was still insecure about herself and he didn't like it.

'Sweetheart, you know they do. Now, its Christmas Eve, and I really wanted to show up at the annual Security Services Christmas Ball with the most beautiful woman in the world on my arm.'

Harry paused for dramatic effect, knowing his next line would either win him the battle or resign him to a lengthy sentence on the sofa.

'You don't happen to have her phone number do you?'

He held his breath and waited for a response from Ruth. The few seconds it took before the laughter left her mouth seemed an age to him, but once it arrived, he mentally held aloft his winner's trophy. Ruth slapped him playfully on the arm and he joined in with her laughter.

'It's a good job you have such devastatingly good looks Harry, your sense of humour is horrendous.'

They kissed softly for a few minutes until Ruth pulled away and locked herself in the bathroom, taking the dress with her. Harry stared stupidly at the closed door, wondering what he had ever done to deserve such an amazing woman. It took Ruth less than five minutes to dress and Harry was still staring at the bathroom door in a love struck stupor when it opened again.

She took his breath away in the beautiful gown. The silk shimmered in the light and the colour matched her eyes. She was elegant and beautiful and all the other words that Harry wasn't capable of thinking of right now. Taking her hand, they made their way downstairs and into the waiting car, laughing and joking as they went.


End file.
